<br>'''Charles City County, Virginia''' genealogy and family history research page. Guide to '''Charles City County''' (established 1634) genealogy, history, and courthouse sources including birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, wills, deeds and land records, Civil War records, Revolutionary War records, family histories, cemeteries, churches, tax records, newspapers, and obituaries.

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Guide to '''Charles City County Virginia genealogy.''' Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, immigration records, and military records.

Paul Heinegg has determined that in 1790, Charles City County, Virginia had&nbsp;the highest percentage of free African Americans in its population, per capita, where that statistic can be measured, of all Virginia counties (14.8% of the population or&nbsp;363 free blacks).<ref>Paul Heinegg, "Introduction," in ''Free African Americans of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland and Delaware,'' http://www.freeafricanamericans.com/introduction.htm.</ref>

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Paul Heinegg has determined that in 1790, Charles City County, Virginia had&nbsp;the highest percentage of free African Americans in its population, per capita, where that statistic can be measured, of all Virginia counties (14.8% of the population or&nbsp;363 free blacks).<ref>Heinegg, Paul. "Introduction," in ''Free African Americans of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland and Delaware,'' http://www.freeafricanamericans.com/introduction.htm.</ref>

For a detailed list, including addresses, phone numbers, and external links, see ''[[Charles City County, Virginia Cemeteries]]''.

For a detailed list, including addresses, phone numbers, and external links, see ''[[Charles City County, Virginia Cemeteries]]''.

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The following is a list of cemeteries in Charles City County:<ref>[http://www.topozone.com/states/Virginia.asp?county=Charles+City&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;feature=Cemetery USGS Map], Topozone.com</ref>

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The following is a list of cemeteries in Charles City County:<ref>[http://www.topozone.com/states/Virginia.asp?county=Charles+City&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;feature=Cemetery USGS Map], Topozone.com</ref>

Though the records of Charles City County, Virginia were largely destroyed, Mr. James A. Leachy found a number of marriage bonds in loose papers in the Charles City Clerk's Office covering a range of years ('''1762-1849'''). They are abstracted in "Marriage Bonds in Charles City County," ''The William and Mary Quarterly'', Vol. 8, No. 3 (Jan. 1900):193-196. Available at [http://www.jstor.org JSTOR]&nbsp;($).They were republished by Crozier:<br>

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Though the records of Charles City County, Virginia were largely destroyed, Mr. James A. Leachy found a number of marriage bonds in loose papers in the Charles City Clerk's Office covering a range of years ('''1762-1849'''). They are abstracted in "Marriage Bonds in Charles City County," ''The William and Mary Quarterly'', Vol. 8, No. 3 (Jan. 1900):193-196. Available at [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1920206 JSTOR] - free. Republished by Crozier and online:<br>

Dorman, John Frederick. "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Charles City County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 7, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun.1963):75-77. Digital version at American Ancestors ($).

African American

Paul Heinegg has determined that in 1790, Charles City County, Virginia had the highest percentage of free African Americans in its population, per capita, where that statistic can be measured, of all Virginia counties (14.8% of the population or 363 free blacks).[4]

Church Records

Baptist

The 10,000 name petition (dated 16 October 1776) has been digitized at the Library of Congress website. It was signed by people from all over Virginia who wanted an end to persecution of Baptists by the Established Church. Baptists and Baptist sympathizers alike signed the petition. To find your ancestor in this record, first check Hall's transcription in the Magazine of Virginia Genealogy (Vols. 35-38, with annotations in Vol. 39), which is available online at Ancestry ($). It is also available in book form at the Family History Library: FHL Book 975.5 B2vs v. 35-39. Then proceed to the Library of Congress website to see the original images.

Methodist

Presbyterian

Walls, Louise Adams, William Elmer Cropper, and Robert Lee Marston. A History of Bethany Presbyterian Church, Charles City County, Virginia. n.p.: Committee for the Preparation of a Church History, 1990.

Ayres, Margaret McNeill. Charles City County, Virginia, Order Book 1676-1679. Memphis, Tennessee, 1968.

Anderson, Russell H. "Charles City County Court Record, 1762-4, Wills, Deed and Bond," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 59, No. 1 (Jan. 1951):103-107. Available at JSTOR ($). [Copy of lost records found in the Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio.]

"Charles City County, Virginia, Miscellaneous Records," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 14, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1970):178-184. Available at New England Ancestors ($). [Includes remnants of court, guardianship, land, and probate found in the Earl Gregg Swem Library of the College of William and Mary.]

Clay, Robert Y. "Charles City County, Virginia, Reports of the County Clerk to the Auditor, 1784, 1799-1800," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 21, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1977):83-88. Available at New England Ancestors ($).

Record Book

"Excerpts from the Charles City County Records (1665-1666)," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 43, No. 4 (Oct. 1935):347-354. Available at JSTOR ($).

Genealogy

More than 200 genealogies have been published about Charles City County families. To view a list, visit Charles City County, Virginia Genealogy.

Historic Residences

Berkeley--1619, 1726: A James River Plantation, Ancestral Home of a Signer of the Declaration of Independence and Two United States Presidents, Charles City County, Virginia. 197-?.

"Charles City Houses," The William and Mary Quarterly, Second Series, Vol. 17, No. 1 (Jan. 1937):90. Available at JSTOR.

McClane, Patrick Wade, K Edward Lay, University of Virginia. School of Architecture. Berkeley Plantation, 1726, Charles City County, Virginia. Charlottesville, Va.: School of Architecture, University of Virginia, 1989.

"Old Houses in Charles City, New Kent, Warwick, and Elizabeth City Counties," The William and Mary Quarterly, Second Series, Vol. 18, No. 2 (Apr. 1938). Available at JSTOR.

Street, Elwood. Historic Charles City County: Many of More Famous Homes Found Too, in this One of Eight Original Shrines. Richmond, Virginia: Richmond Times-Dispatch, 1942.

University of Virginia, Library. Berkeley Plantation Journal and Account Book, 1839-1877, Charles City County, Virginia, accession number 11260. Bethesda, Maryland: University Publications of America, 2001.

Immigration

Headright grants identify many Charles City County, Virginia Genealogy immigrants who arrived before 1720.[9] The Virginia Immigration article provides tips about using this source.

Additional resources include:

Coldham, Peter Wilson. North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. [Includes wills of residents of Charles City County, St. Martin Brandon [Martin's Brandon Parish], and West and Shirley Hundred proved in London. These records often help establish an immigrant's place of origin.]

During the War of 1812, American officials reported finding a total of 1 British alien living in Charles City County.[10]

Land and Property

Deeds

Anderson, Russell H. "Charles City County Court Record, 1762-4, Wills, Deed and Bond," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 59, No. 1 (Jan. 1951):103-107. Available at JSTOR ($). [Copy of lost records found in the Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio.]

Deeds, Wills and Bonds: From Charles City County (Va.), 1724/5-1731, 1762-1769, MSS., available at University of Virginia Library.

Articles of Agreement Between William Byrd, Esq. of Charles City and John Caldwell of Brunswick County, Virginia [17 Jan 1743], MSS., Carmen Finley Papers, available at Sonoma State University.

"Charles City County, Virginia, Miscellaneous Records," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 14, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1970):178-184. Available at New England Ancestors ($). [Includes remnants of court, guardianship, land, and probate found in the Earl Gregg Swem Library of the College of William and Mary.]

Grants and Patents

Land patents (pre-1779), land grants (after 1779) and surveys are available online at the Library of Virginia website. For step-by-step instructions on retrieving these records, read the Virginia Land and Property article.

Nugent, Nell Marion. Cavaliers and Pioneers: Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants 1623-1666. Vol. I (1934; reprint, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1991). Available at FHL; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes Charles City County. N.B. If Ancestry's search engine fails, try checking the printed index at the end of the book.]

Local Histories

Dreyer, Mark A.; Ragsdale, Judith R.; Walker, Edward R.; Walker, Elaine V.; College of William and Mary. Dept. of Religion. An Historical Analysis of Charles City County, Va. 1979. Available at the College of William and Mary.

Maps

Military

Colonial Militia

Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at FHL. [Identifies some Charles City County militia officers and soldiers; see place name index.]

Crozier, William Armstrong. Virginia Colonial Militia 1651-1776. Baltimore: Southern Book Co., 1954. Available at FHL; digital book at Ancestry ($). [Identifies some Charles City County militia officers and soldiers; see place name index.]

French and Indian War

Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at FHL. [Identifies some Charles City County militia officers, soldier enlistments, and veterans; see place name index.]

Revolutionary War

Regiments. Service men in Charles City County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Charles City County supplied soldiers for the:

War of 1812

List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883; Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for Why Pensioned, the Post-Office Address, the Rate of Pension Per Month, and the Date of Original Allowance... Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1883. FHL Collection 973 M2Lp v. 5; digital versions at Google Books and Internet Archive. [See Vol. 5, Virginia, Charles City County, p. 67.]

Civil War

Regiments. Service men in Charles City County, Virginia Genealogy served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Charles City County, Virginia Genealogy:

Charles City County (Va.). Monument to Confederate Soldiers. Addresses Delivered at the Unveiling of the Monument to Confederate Soldiers of Charles City County, Virginia, at Charles City Courthouse, November 21, 1900. Richmond, Virginia: Whittet and Shepperson, Printers, 1901.

Copland, Mary Ruffin, United Daughters of the Confederacy. Virginia Division. Harrison-Harwood Chapter, Charles City. Confederate History of Charles City County, Virginia. Richmond?, 1957.

Naturalization

Newspapers

Indexed images of the Virginia Gazette (1736-1780) are available online through the Colonial Williamsburg website. In addition, Professor Tom Costa and The Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia have created a database of all runaway advertisements for slaves, indentured servants, transported convicts, and ship deserters listed in this source and other Virginia newspapers (1736-1803), see: The Geography of Slavery in Virginia. These newspapers are valuable resources for all regions of Virginia.

Private Papers

University of Virginia, Library. Berkeley Plantation Journal and Account Book, 1839-1877, Charles City County, Virginia, accession number 11260. Bethesda, Maryland: University Publications of America, 2001.

[Jerdone] College of William and Mary, Swem Library. Jerdone Family Papers, 1623-1957, Charles City, Hanover, Louisa, New Kent, and York Counties, Virginia, also Great Britain. Bethesda, Maryland: University Publications of America, 1994.

[Selden] Selden Family, John Armistead Selden. Papers, 1811-1868, of the Selden Family of Charles City County, Va., MSS., available at the Virginia Historical Society Library.

Petitions

Petitions are valuable to genealogical research because they were often signed by residents of the locality and provide researchers with a glimpse of who lived in the area at the time. Some lists include hundreds of names.

"Charles City County Grievances 1676," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 3, No. 2 (Oct. 1895):132-160. Available at JSTOR ($).

Grundset, Eric. "Petition of Inhabitants of Charles City County 16 November 1710," Magazine of Virginia Genealogy, Vol.47, No.3 (Aug. 2009):213-214.

Private Papers

Probate Records

Remnants of Charles City County, Virginia Court

"Excerpts from the Charles City County Records (1665-1666)," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 43, No. 2 (Apr. 1935):144-149. Available at JSTOR ($). [Probate Inventory of Captain Richard Tye, Deceased, 1663.]

Anderson, Russell H. "Charles City County Court Record, 1762-4, Wills, Deed and Bond," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 59, No. 1 (Jan. 1951):103-107. Available at JSTOR ($). [Copy of lost records found in the Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio.]

Deeds, Wills and Bonds: From Charles City County (Va.), 1724/5-1731, 1762-1769, MSS., available at University of Virginia Library.

"Charles City County, Virginia, Miscellaneous Records," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 14, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1970):178-184. Available at New England Ancestors ($). [Includes remnants of court, guardianship, land, and probate found in the Earl Gregg Swem Library of the College of William and Mary.]

Original Wills

Charles City County, Virginia Will: 1772 December 12 [Will of Ellyson Crew], MSS., available at Library of Virginia.

Berkeley, Charles City County, Virginia, Will: 1780 January 3 [Will of Benjamin Harrison], MSS., available at Library of Virginia.

Hopkins, William Lindsay. Some Wills from the Burned Counties of Virginia and Other Wills Not Listed in Virginia Wills and Administrations 1632-1800. Richmond, Virginia: W.L. Hopkins, 1987. Available at FHL. [Includes Charles City County.]

Coldham, Peter Wilson. North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. [Includes wills of residents of Charles City County, St. Martin Brandon [Martin's Brandon Parish], and West and Shirley Hundred proved in London. These records often help establish an immigrant's place of origin.]

[1783] Fothergill, Augusta B. and John Mark Naugle. Virginia Tax Payers, 1782-87, Other Than Those Published by the United States Census Bureau. 1940; reprint, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1978. Available at FHL. [1783 personal property tax list of Charles City County.]

[1787] Schreiner-Yantis, Netti and Florene Speakman Love. The 1787 Census of Virginia: An Accounting of the Name of Every White Male Tithable Over 21 Years, the Number of White Males Between 16 & 21 Years, the Number of Slaves over 16 & Those Under 16 Years, Together with a Listing of Their Horses, Cattle & Carriages, and Also the Names of All Persons to Whom Ordinary Licenses and Physician's Licenses Were Issued. 3 vols. Springfield, Va.: Genealogical Books in Print, 1987. Available at FHL. [The source of this publication is the 1787 personal property tax list. Charles City County is included in Vol. 2.]

[1815] Ward, Roger D. 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer). 6 vols. Athens, Georgia: Iberian Pub. Co., 1997-2000. Available at FHL. [The source for this publication is the 1815 land tax. Charles City County is included in Vol. 1.]

Birth

Marriage

Though the records of Charles City County, Virginia were largely destroyed, Mr. James A. Leachy found a number of marriage bonds in loose papers in the Charles City Clerk's Office covering a range of years (1762-1849). They are abstracted in "Marriage Bonds in Charles City County," The William and Mary Quarterly, Vol. 8, No. 3 (Jan. 1900):193-196. Available at JSTOR - free. Republished by Crozier and online:

Vital Record Substitutes

The Virginia Historical Society's Marriage and Obituary Index, 1736-1820 (newspaper abstracts) is available for free online. Images of the original index cards are browseable, arranged alphabetically by surname.